Life has been CRAZY

So I have not blogged in a while, but it is because life has been crazy. I finished up all my classes, but still had to work a couple more weeks at my assistantship at BU. Then I also started student teaching. I was excited at first, then overwhelmed and discouraged with my placement. Needless to say, I was kind of a nervous wreck, on the verge of emotional breakdowns for a couple of weeks in May. I was stressed about multiple things and just always had a lot weighing on me and a lot on my mind. I was feeling incapable and inadeqaute. I was feeling like student teaching was not going to be a good experience, from interactions with the teacher at my middle school. Last weekend, I was literally at my breaking point. We had Stake Conference on Saturday night, which was a wonderful session. Then on Sunday morning, while watching the Stake Conference broadcast from Salt Lake City, our lovely chapel in Cambridge, MA caught on fire and we had to evacuate. That was a huge ordeal, many of you got my email, and I will put the details of that in a separate post. That broke me. I just didn't think that I could handle any more, and especially not with my chapel, or refuge from the world, gone. It was a sad day (big understatement). However, a week later, I am here to say that I made it through. I had a wonderful week of teaching middle school physical education, and my teacher actually had a lot of positive things to say about each of my lessons, along with the constructive criticism. I am feeling much better about my student teaching experience and much more capable. I have had a good week and a good weekend. I have been teaching, exercising, spending much more time with friends, and enjoying Boston, and making time for the most important things. Back: Rachel and I, front: (L to R) Amanda, Alison and Madeline. We were celebrating Alison and Amanda's birthdays by going out to dinner. We feel like this could be our little family picture. I am grateful for good friends who love me here in Boston.

The birthday girls, Alison (now 25) and Amanda (now 24)-Rachel and I threw them a little surprise party.

Since Alison and I are now both 25, we are trying to be 25...I am the 2, she is the 5-random, I know.

Here is Maddie, Alison's sister who is here in Boston for the summer with us until she heads back to BYU for the fall, being the 2 and Alison being the 5. We are having too much fun, eh?

And here are Amanda and Alison being 24, Amanda had her b-day and turned 24, and Alison was still 24 for a couple more days til her b-day when she turned 25.

Here is Maddie and Alison, sisters; Maddie made Alison's favorite pudding cake-oh, so yummy!

Here is Amanda with her b-day cake, Rachel made it, the funfetti kind!

Here I am at the park on a Sunday, we were reading and enjoying the beautiful weather. I decided to roll down the hill, but had a white shirt on that I didn't want to get grass stains. Hence the blanket tied tightly around me. It was a long hill, and I got really, really dizzy.

I love Boston this time of year; everything is so so green and there are so many things blooming and blossoming. These are some pretty tulips on the Boston Temple grounds. Unfortunately, I did start to get some allergies this week; I think it is because I have spent so much time outside everyday at my middle school for student teaching. Well, enjoy the rest of the month of May, it has gone fast!!!